Building a log home in middle TN - help!

My husband and I are in the planning stages of building our first log home. We have the land, located in Mt. Juliet, TN, just outside of Nashville. I had initially thought that going with one of the package deals through a log home company was the best way to go, but after doing more research it seems as though that is not necessarily the case. While we do not want to build the home from scratch ourselves, a lot of the finish work (windows, doors, tiling, fixtures, etc.) we would love to do in order to save a little money. Does anyone have any suggestions on a builder in the area that has built log homes before? What about a company for the logs? Tennessee Log Homes in Athens is one of the companies I have looked into.

We are planning on attending the Log Home Living magazine log home show here in Nashville in February so maybe I can get some builders names there?

Replies to This Discussion

Katie: First of all , good luck with your endeavor, research the companies that interest you and find out who will work with you to get you to the point where you can take over the project. See if you can visit homes in your area that were erected by the companies that you will be considering. Perhaps you can get names of previous customers that you can call and talk to one on one.

If you look at my profile you will see that I do work for a log home company located in Knoxville TN. a well established and well respected log home provider, one which I am proud to work for and one that will help you with the suggestions that I have outlined above.

If you are looking into Tennessee Log Homes, I would look elsewhere. You need to go to www.loghomereports.com and read up on them. I have found several lawsuits, involving them, and they have some complaints on the bbb. There are too many companies out there that are better than tlh.

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions. We are still looking to narrow our list but Nature Built is on the short list as well as Honest Abe. Thanks for the loghomereports link. I had checked the bbb for Nashville companies but TLH not being in Nashville did't come up...

I just looked at the www.bbb.org and there is one complaint. The company is under Tennessee Log and Timber Homes. I have searched before and have seen three complaints, on there at one time. Hope this helps

Thanks. What I meant was when I did my search I apparently only searched Nashville businesses and since TLH is based in Athens, near Knoxville, it was not included in my search. There are several companies closer to where we live so we will probably focus on those to start anyway...

That will probably be best, but please remember to check companies out, also, from your local sources, such as court records. You are planning on spending a lot of money on one of the biggest investments in your life, it would be worth a trip to your local court house, to chek out anyone you are goingt odeal with. A lot of court records are also on line too. Good luck in your endeavors!

Katie,
This is Daniel Carroll with Tennessee Log and Timber Homes. My wife Carolyn and I met with you and Brian at the show in Nashville. I can see that you are doing your homework. You are right in checking out all your options. In checking with the BBB please notice that our rating is A+ and that all issues have been resolved. Here is the link you can post into your browser.

While you are at it please check Carolyn and I out with BBB. At the link below and you will find we have an A+ Rating and ZERO complaints and we will let you contact every one of our customers if you like.

Just so you know we have a new building consultant in Spring Hill near you and we would be happy to work with both you and him to provide you with package and building costs. We woul love to help you with your project if you are ready to move forward. We still have the plans you left with us at the show if you want us to move forward with an estimate or we would be happy to meet you at your site in Mt Juliet to discuss further. We are currently working with a couple at Thompson Station and are there regularly.

Apparently, you as a dealer, may have a good reputation, but I feel the consumer needs to deal with a manufacturer, that has the good reputation. That is the most important reputation a consumer needs to worry about!

The first link above is for TLTH corporate office. As I stated before their BBB rating is A+ and all issues have been resolved to this date. Burton Webb as President of the company personally oversees all complaints and will settle for nothing less than complete resolution of customer issues.

As local representatives with direct contact with the customer at all stages of the process we are able to more quickly resolve any issues that might arise. If the customer chooses to deal directly with corporate they are more than welcome to do so and we will still be there to lend support when needed.

Carolyn and I researched log home companies for more than three years before purchasing from TLTH and based on that personal experience decided these were the kind of people we wanted to be involved with.

We would be very interested to know which manufacturer you feel has the best reputation in the industry.